Cry, Cry, Cry-ing Tears of Joy at Landmark on Main

Folk fans have waited a long, long time for this. The 2017 Clearwater Folk Festival in June marked the first time this century that folk supergroup Cry, Cry, Cry performed together since touring in support of their one and only album in 1999.

Cry, Cry, Cry is made up of three extremely talented singer-songwriters: Dar Williams, Richard Shindell, and Lucy Kaplansky. The three briefly came together to release one album - the 1998 self-titled Cry, Cry, Cry - featuring a collection of (somewhat obscure, aside from one) covers by less well-known artists. Each song was a gem, beautifully interpreted and with soaring harmonies. The album was well-received, and the three toured together in 1999, before returning to their solo endeavors.

All three artists have performed at Landmark before. In fact, when Landmark’s Executive Director Laura Mogul was introducing Cry, Cry, Cry to the stage, she mentioned that the musicians had performed at Landmark a total of 11 times in the past – solo, and in various combinations with other artists. I have been at all of these performances. (To see my archived reviews, visit www.annreviews.com). Each artist is powerful in his or her own right, but together they are more than the sum of their parts.

The Landmark performance, on September 24th, was only the fourth show they’ve done since reuniting. The three took the stage with their guitars (and in the case of Kaplansky, a mandolin). Over the course of the show, they took turns telling stories, and performing their own songs in addition to Cry, Cry, Cry’s repertoire. They also included some new songs – lending hope to the idea that another CD may be coming.

They opened with their version of Buddy Mondlock’s “The Kid” – probably one of the most beloved songs on their CD. Other Cry, Cry, Cry songs from the CD that they performed live included Cliff Eberhardt’s ”Memphis,” Richard Shindell’s “The Ballad of Mary Magdalen,” Julie Miller’s “By Way of Sorrow,” and the amazing story-song, “Cold Missouri Waters,” by James Keelaghan. (Note: “Cold Missouri Waters” tells the story of the Mann Gulch fire of 1949 through the eyes of one of the remaining survivors – a riveting piece of songwriting.)

Each artist did one of their own songs as well, accompanied by the others. Thus, the audience was treated to Lucy Kaplansky’s “Reunion,” Dar Williams’ “Something to Get Through,” and Richard Shindell’s “Satellites.” The other songs in their performance were in the genre of those on their original CD – wonderful but less recognizable songs by other artists. Among them were: Julie Miller’s “I Know Why the River Runs,” Angel Snow’s “These Days,” and “Go” by Rick and Michele Gedney. But my favorite of the ‘new’ covers was, without a doubt, their version of “Cathedrals,” by the band Jump Little Children. (Note: another Landmark alum, Joan Osborne, has also covered this song).

In an email exchange following the concert, I was able to ask Lucy Kaplansky how Cry, Cry, Cry picked their songs. “We all love singing great covers,” replied Kaplansky, “and part of the idea was to cover some lesser known songwriters.” But she confirmed that for a song to be accepted by the group, they have to unanimously like it, and it has to be great for harmony. While Kaplansky wouldn’t confirm whether another CD is on the horizon, this writer is betting that it is. (And if it isn’t, it should be – come on guys!)

The group closed, fittingly, with a cover of Johnny Cash’s “Cry, Cry, Cry.” The only negative I can possibly come up with about this show was that it was over too quickly. Don’t miss Cry, Cry, Cry (or any of its individual members) if you have an opportunity to see them.

Next performance at Landmark is Martin Sexton on October 14th. For more information, visit www.landmarkonmainstreet.org

Photo credit: Steven Silberstein